The present invention relates to. a shift lock mechanism for a shift lever mechanism. The present invention relates especially to a shift lock mechanism for a shift lever mechanism operatively connected with a key lock mechanism for a vehicle.
A shift lever mechanism for a vehicle has a shift lock mechanism for allowing an engine key to be pulled out of a key lock mechanism when the shift lever is in a parking position, and for preventing the shift lever from being shifted away from the parking position when the engine key is not in the key lock mechanism.
In general, the shift lever mechanism has a detent structure for allowing a position change of the shift lever when a rod is moved axially in the shift lever by pressing a button in a knob.
The shift lock mechanisms is arranged to prevent the movement of the shift lever directly, or to prevent the movement of the rod.
The rod mechanism may be of a push rod type or a pull rod type. In the push rod type, the rod is pushed downward by a pressing operation of the knob button. In the pull rod type, the rod is pulled upward by a pressing operation of the knob button.
In the shift lever mechanism of the pull rod type, the pull rod is normally urged downward in a pipe of the shift lever connected with the knob, and the lower end of the pull rod is engaged with a detent groove. By a pressing operation of the knob button, the pull rod is lifted up and the lower end is disengaged from the dent groove.
The shift lock mechanism is required in the shift lever mechanism of the pull rod type, too. However, a conventional shift lock mechanism for the push rod type is not appropriate for the pull rod type.
Therefore, it is difficult to use a shift lock cancellation mechanism in common for both the pull rod type and the push rod type. Moreover, the conventional construction is complicated and tends to increase the number of required parts. The cancellation mechanism is a mechanism for forcibly canceling the shift lock of the shift lever in the parking position, and thereby allowing a shift away from the parking position.
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a shift lock mechanism having a cancellation mechanism which is compact and usable for shift lever mechanisms of various types.
According to the present invention, a shift lock mechanism comprises:
a shift lock lever having an inner cylindrical portion rotatably supported in a casing, the inner cylindrical portion having an inner axial slot and a circumferential slot extending continuously from the axial slot;
a key lock lever having an outer hollow cylindrical portion fitting over the inner cylindrical portion of the shift lock lever, the outer hollow cylindrical portion having an outer axial slot;
a slider mounted on the outer cylindrical portion of the key lock lever, the slider having a key portion projecting inwardly into the outer and inner axial slots to prevent relative rotation between the outer and inner cylindrical portions of the shift lock lever and the key lock lever, and allowing rotation of the shift lock lever relative to the key lock lever by moving in the circumferential slot of the inner cylindrical portion; and
an operating member for moving the slider axially on the outer cylindrical portion of the key lock lever.